India’s first 20 Smart Cities announced. Here’s a sneak-peek…

Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu announced the first batch of smart cities on Thursday, January 28. Smart cities are basically decided on features like result orientation, feasibility, citizen participation, smartness of proposals, etc. Here’s a full list of the first 20 smart cities:

While some of these cities came as a bit of a surprise, others like Chennai and Pune are excellent picks. The advantage of being picked as a smart city is that these cities will get the funds to start off their development process. The per city allocation for this plan is Rs. 100 crores for each of the 5 years in this mission. “Today marks a historic landmark in annals of urban development as we get to know the first batch of ‘Smart Cities,” said Naidu on announcing the names of the first 20 smart cities.

Some of the characteristics that “smart cities” feature are as follows:

Housing and Inclusiveness

Creating walkable localities

Preserving and developing open spaces

Promoting a variety of transport options

Making governance citizen-friendly and cost effective

Giving an identity to the city

All of these features, and a few others, make for a smart city. This comprehensive mission comprises an exhaustive selection process. Each state is allocated a certain number of smart cities based on the urban population and number of statutory towns. For detailed information on smart cities, do visit: smartcities.gov.in

What are your thoughts on the Government’s latest city development mission? Which cities according to you should make it to the list of India’s smart cities?